Break a Leg
by ghostiprince
Summary: A new Accommodator has been located, but all the generals are away on other important business, so Central decides to send a small group of Exorcists instead. Allen, Lavi, Lenalee, and Kanda go to Tokyo to find the newest Accommodator, but what they aren't prepared for is a city riddles with dangerous creatures called Ghouls.


The ever empty hallways of the Black Order were momentarily alive with noise. Excited chattering surrounded the pair as they made their way through poorly lit corridor after corridor―honestly, could the Order bother to install a usable to all faculty elevator because Lavi could barely feel his feet after who knows how many staircases he had just ascended. Nonetheless, Lavi put on a cheerful smile and talked animatedly with Allen, occasionally throwing in a couple jokes, which the other would laughed at lightly. The duo were loudly making their way to the Superior's office on one of the upper floors. A few hours earlier Lenalee had dropped by to tell them that they had a mission briefing to attend to before running off on another one of her many errands. After that Lavi had made a mental note to someday find out what kind of odd errands the various departments sent her on, he had always been a little curious but never had had the chance to ask; plus it might be a good pastime for him next time Bookman tried to make Lavi do more tedious memorization work.

The large doors to Komui's office opened, revealing Lavi and Allen, both looking healthy and in good spirits. Lavi observed that Kanda and Lenalee were already present; with Kanda leaning against a wall, appearing as displeased as ever, and Lenalee standing by her brother, Komui, their Supervisor. As all the Exorcists, who would be taking part in this mission, were finally gathered in the room, Komui told them to get comfortable and take a seat. While they got settled, each Exorcist taking various spots in the spacious office―Lavi deciding to lounge on the couch with Allen sitting properly next to him, Lenalee standing by her brother as usual, and Kanda, content with his original spot, leaning against the wall―Komui sifted through the piles upon piles of papers strewn all over and around his desk, probably searching for the mission order. Lavi wasn't surprised when Lenalee tapped Komui's shoulder to inform her frazzled brother that she was in possession of the sought out papers, it was a very Lenalee like thing to do to keep the documents safe and locatable. Komui stopped his hurried search, thanked her, and then delved right into the content of their new assignment.

"A couple days ago we received word from the Asian Branch that General Klaud Nine had hurriedly reported the whereabouts of a suspected Accommodator. Unfortunately the General was called away immediately on an emergency by Central. So in her stead we have been given the mission of locating the Accommodator and bring them back." Komui shuffled and flipped through the papers, while Lenalee unfolded a map onto the board at the head of the room so everyone could get a good look of the location. Lavi guessed it was going to be professional mode Komui from the get go today, judging by the way the other's normal sister complex ways were being put on the back burner.

"Allen, Lavi, Kanda, Lenalee. Tomorrow you four will be headed for Japan, specifically Tokyo formerly known as Edo," stated Komui as he traced invisible lines through Tokyo on the map with a pointer. At the mention of Japan, Lavi spared a glance Kanda's way, wondering what kind of reaction the news of the location would have on the other. Unfortunately there was no reaction from the swordsman, or at least none that were too outright, though Lavi did notice the slight sharp intake of breath. "Right now the city is separated into different Wards. It will be difficult though not impossible for you four to find the Accommodator. I have requested that you bring the Innocence with you to aid the search. You have been granted access to use the Ark to travel, and don't forget to call in with updates. I'm sorry we don't know more information or leads. The city has been isolated for a long time, so be careful. We won't be able to tell you of the dangers that could lurk there, besides Akuma, which should be a given."

The debriefing concluded, and it seemed like they had all come to the consensus that there was not much to discuss as of now with the information that had just been passed to them. So, in the meantime, Allen stood up and said he would do his best, then left to get started on packing, leaving Lavi, Lenalee, Kanda, and Komui in the office. Soon after, Kanda pushed off the wall he had been leaning on, grunted his acknowledgement of the mission, and made a swift exit. Next to leave was Lavi, who said, with a smile, "Well, I better report back to Bookman. See ya."

As he had said, Lavi headed for the library where he knew he would find Bookman. He had a couple questions of his own he wanted to ask, in addition to telling his mentor about the mission. When he arrived Bookman was writing on some paper while simultaneously reading a book, nothing out of the ordinary. Taking a seat in one of the many chairs strewn throughout the library, Lavi relaxed as he reported his new assignment. "We were just assigned an interesting mission, Old Panda," chirped Lavi with a grin. "We're going to find an Accommodator in Tokyo, Japan. Exciting right? 'Cause normally these kind of missions are handed off to the Generals. Anyway, Komui was a little skimpy on the details so, by chance, do you know much about the state of affairs in Tokyo as of now? I mean 'cause last time we were there it was in Noah's Ark and all..."

Bookman glanced up at the redhead and nodded. Lavi sat up, eagerly wanting to hear the information Bookman would tell to him. "From what I recall the city of Tokyo is split into twenty-four Wards. That is somehow due to a new species of creature, called ghouls, which have been isolated within the city. Ghouls are dangerous human appearing creatures that feed on the flesh of humans." Lavi made a disgusted noise in the back of his throat at the mention of humanoid creatures consuming people's flesh. "An organization called the Commission of Counter Ghoul, or CCG for short, is working to exterminate ghouls," concluded Bookman. "It is not that different from Exorcists getting rid of Akuma."

Soaking up everything he had just heard, Lavi fell back into leather of his chair, grumbling a little to himself. "...This mission just got a whole lot more complicated," groaned the Bookman Junior. At the mere thought of coming into contact with something that called him dinner, his blood ran cold. He was too young to be eaten alive, he had things to live for like a long life of pestering Kanda. Bitterly Lavi muttered that at least in comparison, death by Akuma bullets seemed relatively painless and welcoming now. Regaining his Lavi-like attitude, he jumped up and said, "Anyway, if you don't have anything for me to do then I'll be off." And after that, he disappeared before Bookman could say anything, not actually wanting to hear if the Old Panda had any work for him.

He headed for the cafeteria. Going to get food seemed like a good plan since it was around dinner time, though he wasn't too hungry after hearing about humanoids that ate people. Shuddering at the thought, Lavi continued on his way to the cafeteria. Even if he felt sick to his stomach, Allen was bound to be in the cafeteria eating his little heart out since this would be the last time for a while that he could have Jerry's cooking, and Lavi did enjoy the white-haired boy's company, though he hoped he would find Kanda there as well. Those two always had the funniest little spats that never seemed to get old, especially because Lavi ended up getting to teasing both of his friends during them.

By the time he got to the cafeteria, dinner was almost over. The place wasn't too crowded and was relatively quiet. Lavi wondered why. After looking around for a moment, he didn't spot Kanda and figured that the dark haired Exorcist had forgotten about dinner, so Lavi decided to pick up some soba for his best friend, in addition to his own dinner. Claiming his seat across from Allen's mountain of food, he started chatting away to pass the time. He had a guttural feeling that right now wouldn't be a good time to bother the person he really wanted to see, Kanda, so he would settle for little Allen's company for now.

"So Moyashi, what'd ya think about our mission?" Since Allen had joined the Black Order they have been finding a lot of new Exorcists, the largest surge recorded of Accommodators being located during such a short time. Lavi couldn't help but wonder and speculate that the high numbers could have something to do with Allen or that it could be a very unlikely coincidence. This assignment included, that is if they found the Accommodator. His natural curiosity drove him to want to unravel all of Allen's secrets, to figure out this little anomaly, but that wasn't what he was here to do so his curiosity would just have to wait.

"I'm glad we'll have someone new joining us soon. The more comrades the better!" answered Allen with a slightly full mouth. That had been a good answer, and of course the more Exorcists the better, but he had wanted to hear Allen's particular thoughts about embarking on such a long mission with the limited information they had been given. Though as soon as they left he would tell the group what he had learned from Bookman, adding to their background knowledge. Still, not wanting to seem out of character, he instead said, "Yeah, yeah, but do you think they'll be a cute girl? I hope so!"

Allen just laughed at Lavi's enthusiastically expressed hopes. "Well, we won't know till we find them. But don't get your hopes up too much. Don't want you to be crying just because we find out they're a boy." The redhead pouted for a moment, then let his characteristic grin slide back onto his face. After that they talked about this and that, but the conversation quickly became boring and uninteresting, so in favor of finding something more stimulating Lavi made a quick getaway. With a mischievous grin on his lips, he reached over and ruffled Allen's hair before getting up to leave. "Anyway, I'm gonna go find Yuu and give him this soba. Catch ya later, Moyashi."

With the tray of soba held in one hand, Lavi made a beeline to the first place he suspected Kanda to be. At the entrance to the training room, Lavi spotted the heavy breathing, sweaty mess that was his best friend and fellow Exorcist. When he eventually spoke up he noticed a familiar twitch of Kanda's muscles that usually meant his best friend was getting readying to cleave him into pieces. "You must be hungry now Yuu-chan. I mean, ya missed dinner and all, so out of the goodness of my heart I brought you your favorite," said Lavi with a taunting, know-it-all grin on his face as he tried to quell the worked up swordsman. The redhead trotted closer to Kanda, then held the tray of soba out in front of him like an offering.

He watched eagerly as Kanda reluctantly grabbed the offered soba, giving Lavi a halfhearted glare as his way of saying thanks. With the bait taken, Lavi assumed it was safe, or at least safer, to continue bothering Kanda. Lavi was so glad that he remembered even the smallest details, and that he had found out Kanda's favorite food, which as he had proved, made for some good bait. "So are ya all packed Yuu-chan? Excited to visit the country where your favorite dish originated from, hmmm?" The unfriendly body language of Kanda's didn't faze Lavi in the least. Even though his best friend turned away and gave Lavi the cold shoulder, he still tried to make conversation. He just interpreted Kanda's methods as being shy or his backwards ways of showing that they were friends.

"Come on. Don't be shy Yuu-chan. I promise I won't laugh." The only thing Lavi got from Kanda was a glare, to which he returned a smile. Finishing the soba, Kanda put down the dish and prepared to draw Mugen. A little concerned that Kanda would cut him up for that last comment, now that the soba was gone, Lavi interrupted and said, "You know Yuu. I think it's really exciting to think that we're going to have a new face around here soon! Maybe you two will get along? Ya know, 'cause they're from your home country and all."

Realizing this was going nowhere, as usual, Lavi gave up with a soft sigh. Usually he had no sense when to throw in the towel, but since it was late and he too needed sleep he decided it would be a good time to leave. He picked up Kanda's empty dishes and left the training room to dispose of them in the kitchen. After putting the dishes in the kitchen sink, Lavi retired to his room. The idea of starting writing today's log really didn't sit well with him, so instead he plucked a book from his shelf and delved right into reading it. Even if he wasn't being productive in one way, he could be in another. Memorizing these encyclopedia sized books had been on his list of things to do, albeit at the bottom of the list, though now they ranked higher than doing his daily log.

This book was about the history of a war that happened before his time. It had some interesting events, but overall Lavi was glad that he hadn't been a Bookman then since it probably was very boring. Soaking up the information like a sponge, Lavi eventually closed the dusty cover to his book, done. Figuring that he couldn't put off his log anymore, Lavi got comfy on his bed and took out a pen. He scrawled down every detail of the day, every minor piece of information he could think of. After he had squeezed out all the minutia from his brain until there was no more he could write about today, Lavi tossed aside his log and rolled over to go to sleep.

* * *

In the morning Lavi was startled awake and ended up hitting his head on his dresser after he suddenly tumbled out of bed. The previous night left him a disturbing dream that had felt too real to be just a figment of his overly active imagination, but then again his imagination did get pretty creative, sometimes even if he didn't want it to. The only part of the dream he could recall was of him in a dark alley, feeling cornered and helpless as a shadowed figure with a threateningly sharp tail approached him. After that he had jolted awake in a cold sweat and had fallen out of bed onto the hard cement floor. Lavi only slightly wondered if the nightmare was caused by lingering fragments from that time Road had messed with his head. Quickly brushing away that thought, he got to his feet and went through his usual departure-day morning rituals, which were just him wearing his Exorcist uniform instead of lounging clothes.

By the time he reached the room with the Ark he wore a cheerful grin that completely hid his uneasiness from the nightmare. Lavi wasn't usually the last to arrive, so he made up some silly excuse about not being able to find his lucky scarf. There was no way he could tell the truth without dying of embarrassment. How would he even approach saying that he had almost pissed his pants in his sleep because a shadowy figure that had been looming in his dreams waved a sharp object at him. That would make him the laughingstock of the Order and he'd rather be the one making the jokes, not on the butt end of them.

Turning to say goodbyes, Lavi marveled at how many people were actually present for the temporary farewell. Everyone was more than likely a little bit nervous that the Exorcists would be missing for a while as well as heading into uncharted territory. Even some Finders were here to wish them safety and luck on their travels. Lavi knew they would undoubtedly need it, if his grasp on the situation they were being thrown into was correct. These kinds of heartfelt moments really tugged on Lavi's heart strings, as he watched Lenalee and Komui exchange protective words, and as he watched Allen promise everyone that they would be back soon and safe with a new Exorcist. These situations really put his position into perspective, that even if these were his friends and family now, he still was just an observer, and if it really came down to it he couldn't promise to take a hit for anyone. To him they had to stay just ink on paper and nothing more.

Shaking his head from the depressing thoughts, Lavi put on a friendly front and waved to all those gathered. The foursome stepped into the glowing light of the Ark Gate, then found themselves in one of the many streets of the Ark. "Hey before we go to Tokyo I have some information I'd like to share with you guys, some stuff Bookman told me." Lavi dropped most of his cheerful act to show that he was being serious. This quickly got the other Exorcists' attention, who turned to fully face Lavi with serious expressions.

He got to the point, reciting everything Bookman had told him the other day with on the dot precision, as per his photographic memory. A tense silence lingered in the air once he had finished talking, everyone caught up in their own thoughts. No one said anything and a sense of dread fell on the group before the most unlikely candidate for encouraging words, Kanda, spoke. "Don't think that a couple creepy beasts will stop me from completing my assignment."

The defiant confidence in Kanda's voice seemed to bring the others from their own pensive thoughts. "Kanda's right. We've handled worse. Besides now we know they exist so we won't be blindly walking into this." Lenalee found her voice, then gave a glance Allen's way. The white-haired Exorcist was already beaming with determination. A silent moment past, then they all started for the door that would lead them to Tokyo.

On the other side of the Ark Gate, they found themselves in a lush, green park. Reaching his arms skyward, Lavi stretched and plopped down onto the neatly trimmed grass. His moment of relaxation was cut short by the tugging worry that he had no idea where the Ark had landed them. Scanning the area for any landmarks or noticeable features, Lavi was interrupted by Allen.

Once the Ark Gate was closed behind them, Allen huffed and asked, "Why is the Edo door so far from the Order door?" Lavi was quick to correct Allen, telling the younger that it was now Tokyo not Edo. "Well, Tokyo is geographically very far from the European Branch so it makes some sense that the door would be pretty far too," spouted Lavi in a very matter-of-fact way. "Did that short walk really tire you out that much or are you just lazy, Moyashi." Despite Kanda's cutting remark Lavi noticed the swordsman's breathing was only slightly more ragged than before, a slight change only he could possibly detect since he spent so much time with Kanda. Before the sparks of the inevitable argument lit, Lenalee stood up and said she wanted to discuss how they were going to go about finding the Accommodator. Lavi nodded in agreement. They couldn't very well knock from door to door in hopes that the Innocence cube would react. That would be very tedious and not to mention suspicious.

Pulling out his map from the back pocket of his pants, Lavi spread it out and pointed to where they probably were. "Well right now we've landed in the Thirteenth Ward, in a large park." When asked how he knew that, Lavi pointed to his left and said the building over there was a shrine located in the Thirteenth Ward. With nothing else to go on, the Exorcists placed their trust in the redhead. "It's afternoon, so I think we better just have a look around before calling it a night." They all nodded at Lavi's suggestion, not that anyone else had any better ideas to contribute.

The group left the park for bustling, crowded streets. Lavi almost dared to say that he wanted to retreat back to the serenity of the park. As he busily took in the scenery―towering skyscrapers, welcoming shop signs, brightly lit up billboards―he failed to notice who he was following, Allen 'directionally-challenged-is-my-middle-name' Walker. By the time he noticed his choice of line leader it was too late, the duo had gotten successfully picked up and lost in the crowd. Lavi noticed that Allen, as well, was preoccupied admiring the location, so preoccupied that before Lavi could react, the white-haired boy had collided with a poor stranger. He stepped closer to help his friend up, then glanced over to see a small child across from both of them. Hastily Allen made many apologies, and held out his hand for the kid. "Sorry for bumping into you. It's my first time here so I got a little caught up in the excitement."

The kid took the offered hand, then dusted off and shined a bright smile the duo's way. "No harm done. Gotta go though." And with that said, the kid hoped away, literally hopped away as if the sidewalk had an invisible hopscotch pattern on it. A moment past as Lavi observed the odd behavior before coming back to the reality of the issue that he and Allen had gotten separated from their friends. Scanning the nearby area, he eventually spotted the familiar red and black of the Order's uniforms. Pulling Allen along with him, the pair dashed over to their fellow Exorcists, only to receive a scolding from Lenalee and a snarky comment from Kanda.

"Hey let's go into this cafe. It'll be quieter and we won't have to worry about our little Moyashi getting lost." The redhead received a jab to his ribs for that, courtesy of one said Moyashi. The cafe had only a couple other customers, so after ordering drinks the Exorcists claimed a table by the window away from the rest of the customers. It would be best if no one overheard their conversation no matter what it would be. A cautious habit they had developed from countless Akuma attacks and Noah ambushes that had been the after effects of their plans being over heard.

A pretty waitress served their drinks then asked if they wanted anything else, to which Allen politely waved her away, saying they were find with just coffee for now. Lavi's scar covered hands―from burns he got from using Hiban―wrapped around the latte he had ordered, letting the warmth radiating from the cup transfer to him. He sipped the latte quietly, noting that it wasn't bad but it had nothing on the lattes he got at the Order. The others took a moment to enjoy their drinks before delving into the serious logistics and planning of their mission.

"Just from watching that crowd I doubt asking people around here about strange occurrences will do much." Lavi gazed out the cafe window, reading the backwards printed cafe name as he spoke. "Hey, do you think Innocence is drawn to its Accommodator and vice versa?" It was only a theory, but he wanted to confirm his suspicions. He could tell by the expressions that his friends were thinking over his question. "Let's say that's how it is. Doesn't that make it easier? We just have to watch the Innocence like a magnet around people. The only downside is the risk we would take. But there's four of us so I think the Innocence will be fine."

"That's crazy! You want us to risk the Innocence on this hunch of yours!" Kanda shot up out of his seat, slamming his hand on the table, making a commotion and drawing attention their way. Lenalee pulled at the swordsman's sleeve, silently ordering him to sit down. Reluctantly Kanda complied, but still glared at Lavi. He was glad the situation had been so quickly defused. "Do you have a better idea, Yuu?" He knew it was a terrible idea but terrible was better than nothing, in their current situation.

"Think about it. Even though it's just the first day, we have no leads, and based off the state of the people and the conditions that are here, we'll have little luck finding the Accommodator. Logically this is the best and quickest way, at least until we find a better method." Moments passed, then finally Lenalee sighed, taking sides with Lavi, though she seemed less than keen on the idea. Next Allen held up his hands in defeat, and said that he would go along with the risky idea. Finally a frustrated noise left Kanda's lips, which Lavi took as Kanda's okay for the idea.

The Exorcists rose and left the cafe, disposing of their cold and forgotten drinks in a nearby trash. The sun had suddenly decided to disappear and leave the Exorcists in a now shadow ridden city, at least that's what Lavi had concluded. The busier places had more lights, but the back alleys and side streets were almost pitch black. Not only did they need to watch out for Akuma, but ghouls now as well, and Allen's eye would be of no help locating ghouls, so they would have to rely on intuition alone. It made Lavi shiver to think that a ghoul could be the stranger walking right next to him or the stranger peering out a shop window in his direction. He really didn't want to have his flesh eaten. They all acted normal, but Lavi could tell that the others were as jumpy and on edge as he was.

Finding a cheap inn to stay at would mean traveling down winding side streets and possibly back alleyways. Turning down one side street Lavi peered into the darkness to see if anything was lurking there, waiting. When he saw nothing the group kept moving. A couple dark streets later they relaxed, relishing in the confidence brought by not finding any people eating creatures so far. According to a brochure Lavi had picked up, the inn they wanted to stay at was only a few more blocks away.

Just when they thought they were almost in the clear, Allen's eye started acting up. The lens cogs clicked and whirred to life, a noise that told the Exorcists that Akuma were headed their way. "One level two and three level ones coming from that way." Allen pointed into the sky to their left. Moments later three gray, ball shaped creatures floated toward them with guns pointed. A few Akuma Bullets were fired before Kanda made quick work of the level ones, slicing them into pieces, before the level two showed up. Two spiny legs jabbed at the Exorcists, managing to leave a cut on Kanda's arm. The level two reminded Lavi of a weird cross between a spider and a sea urchin. Six more legs and a hard shell body came into view on the roof of a building. Kicking off, Lenalee gracefully flew into the air before slamming back down to break the front legs of the Akuma. It cursed and clawed at Lenalee, knocking her out of the air and into a wall with a loud thump. Suddenly Allen's Clown Belt severed the other remaining legs, then with his hammer, Lavi crushed the body of the Akuma.

The attack had been a low scale, and they had all come out relatively unscathed―Lenalee modeled a couple bruises, and Kanda sported a minor cut on his forearm which was already in the process of healing―so Lavi would call that as a job well done, gold stars for everyone. To lighten the mood Lavi wore a cheerful grin and spouted fun, meaningless chatter for the next few blocks till they reached the small shopping district where an inn should be. Soon the group found themselves standing in front of a desk of an old rundown inn. Cheap couldn't even begin to describe the inn they had found. If the so called windows―which were just glass shards left in worn out damaged sills―and the skylight―which was a gaping hole in the ceiling―were any indicator then Lavi would say this place belonged in a ghost town, not in the middle of a small shopping district. The dusty interior didn't make it any better, any sneezing would shake the foundation of the inn. Lavi wanted to suggest that they just leave, but before he could do so the host came to the counter and asked how many rooms they would need.

The mattress groaned under the weight of Kanda when he sat down on the bed. If the mattress felt as hard as Kanda made it look then Lavi would rather take the floor. At least the rotting wooden boards would give a little, or a lot, under his weigh. While Lavi contemplated snoozing on the floor, Allen was by the window turning a sheet into a makeshift curtain in hopes of keeping out the night breeze, and the bugs that fluttered in occasionally. Earlier when they had received their room keys Lavi had found a moist dust layer on the keys that would rub off onto his fingers whenever he held it, so he tried to refrain from touching it. Once the room preparations had been made the three collapsed, not giving any more thought to the conditions of their room, tired out from the day's journey. Sleep came quickly, to all of them. Though once again Lavi was plagued by nightmares.

Blurry colors danced in Lavi's eyes, and when he tried to rub away whatever was messing up his vision he found that his muscles wouldn't obey him. Slowly the dusty film that clouded his sight dissipated to reveal pointed candles floating in space. Eerie light outlined a small figure, which he recognized as Road. When he made eye contact with her the sharp end of her candles pointed in his direction, then flew at him, drilling into his body. Pain shot through him as he was forced to listen to a mangled cry tumble from Road's lips. There were no coherent words, just pained screams. Then a final candle flew at him, embedding itself in Lavi's only good eye.

The redhead bolted upright, panting. Bringing his arms up he cupped his head between his hands, feeling the cold sweat, which probably covered the rest of his body, on his palms. Letting minutes, hours pass he just listened to the even breaths from Allen as he tried to steady his own. When he noticed the sun peeking out from behind the makeshift curtain he decided it was time to get ready. Kanda and Allen were already stirring back to consciousness.

Glad to be out of that dusty shack, Lavi raised his arms to the sky and stretched. The warm rays of sun reflected on his hair, giving it an effect like fire, which he happened to like. Onto day two of their search for the Accommodator, meaning time to apply Lavi's idea dubbed 'better than nothing.' Lenalee was in possession of the Innocence since she had strength and speed at her disposal, for defending it and, if need be, a quick escape. She held the bright cube in the palm of her hand as the group walked by crowds of people. So far nothing.

When they came to the more densely populated area of the location Lenalee would hold the Innocence close to her and let Kanda, Lavi and Allen walk in a triangular formation around her. A few times Lenalee would exclaim that the Innocence was exerting a small pulling force in a direction and they would start moving that way, but each and every time they would lose the trail. This sort of 'boy cried wolf' signals went on for days, where the group would have a lead and go towards it before they all of a sudden lost it, and the cycle would continue.

Leaning against a brick wall, Lavi huffed and ran his calloused hand through his fiery locks of hair before readjusting his headband. "It's been almost an entire two weeks and no matter how many supposed leads we get they all end with failure. This stupid plan of yours, Baka Usagi, is obviously not working," grumbled Kanda, who was right next to Lavi also leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

The Innocence had been put away and the group was now standing about wracking their brains for another idea, or wondering if they should continue with the currently fruitless plan. He held out his hand to Lenalee and asked, "Can I have the Innocence I want to try one more time and if it doesn't work then we can give up and try to come up with a better plan." She nodded and handed over the cube.

The small cube was rather heavy, heavier than Lavi had expected and it gave off some warmth like a small heat signature. He had never held Innocence in its purest form before, so now given the chance Lavi categorized all its aspects into his memory for his mission log later. Gently wrapping his hand around the cube Lavi started walking with the others following him. A few minutes in he noted the weak force Lenalee had mentioned, announcing the direction to his friends. Determined to not lose the faint chance he ran ahead, coming to a stop in front of the back entrance to a large building.

"What is the Innocence doing?" asked Lenalee as she stepped closer to Lavi. He glanced down at the cube, trying to move in the direction of the building. "Either the Accommodator is inside or this building is one big obstruction." Turning back to look at Kanda and Allen, Lavi motioned for them to come closer. "I say we go in and see for ourselves if the Accommodator is inside or not." Allen and Lenalee gave a nod of approval, while Kanda grunted.

The inside of the complex was dark with little to no life, seemingly abandoned. Maybe this was a waste of time. As the Exorcists walked through the empty halls they heard muffled voices from nearby. Around the corner Lavi noticed a door with a faint light coming from it and the echo of voices that they had heard earlier. Again the Innocence pulled him that way, even stronger than it was outside. The Accommodator had to be inside, he was sure of it now considering how the Innocence was reacting. Hesitantly he stood by the door and peeked in.

At the center of the massive crowd, upon a large stage stood a young lady with alabaster skin and big eyes. Standing beside the young lady talking was a strange masked man in an odd suit. Lavi noticed that everyone else in the crowd wore masks as well and had their attention solely focused on the girl. He knew that the Innocence was being drawn to her, just by the way the cube was trying to pull him into the room. Suddenly before Lavi even knew what was happening the girl pulled out knives from what looked to be a fake leg, and stabbed the strangely dressed man in his face, most notably in both his eyes. Then chaos ensued.


End file.
